(F)arm Breakdown: David Davalillo vs the Amarillo Sod Poodles

David Davalillo took the mound again for the Frisco Roughriders last night, and he continued to do what he's done all year: Impress.

David Davalillo, out of Venezuela, signed with the New York Mets in 2021 for $30,000. That deal ended up being voided 2 months later and the Rangers signed Davalillo for $10,000 in June of 2022. He spent 2 years playing in Rookie ball, aside from one start at Low-A Down East at the end of the 2023 season. Davalillo really burst onto the scene in 2024 when he put up a 1.88 ERA in 110.1 innings across Down East and High-A Hickory, striking out 113 and walking only 32. He carried that momentum into the 2025 season, and through 64.1 innings across High-A Hub City and AA Frisco, Davalillo has struck out 82 and walked 14 to a tune of a 2.10 ERA, 2.49 FIP, and a 0.82 WHIP. He's holding opponents to a staggering .163 batting average, along with a 32.6% K% and a 6.0% BB%.

Davalillo sports a six pitch mix. He throws a four-seam fastball, sinker/two-seam fastball, curveball, slider, and splitter. Since his promotion to Frisco he's introduced a cutter into his repertoire as well which has some promising early results to the tune of a 50% whiff rate during his first start. He throws both of his fastballs in the low to mid 90's, and they'll touch 96. His sweeper lives in the low 80's, and his curveball is in the mid to high 70's range. The splitter hovers in the mid 80's, and his new cutter is pretty consistently in the 89-91 range. Opinions of his best pitch varies between scouts, but I'm partial to the splitter. Last year he generated a 58% whiff rate on that pitch alone, and after watching it tonight I can see why. It does have a slightly inconsistent shape, as sometimes it can break glove-side, but he locates it very well and is able to throw it just over 1,000 RPMs. Disgusting, some may call it.

Now, let's get into the pitch-by-pitch breakdown of David Davalillo’s start last night against the Amarillo Sod Poodles:

Sequence:
Fastball (0-1, In play, no out)
Result: Double

Sequence:
Slider (0-1, Called Strike)
Curveball (1-1, Ball)
Fastball (1-2, Foul)
Curveball (2-2, Ball)
Curveball (2-2, Foul)
Fastball (2-2, Foul)
Sinker (3-2, Ball)
Slider (3-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Sequence:
Curveball (0-1, Swinging Strike)
Curveball (1-1, Ball)
Sinker (1-2, Foul)
Sinker (1-2, Foul)
Splitter (1-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Sequence:
Slider (0-1, Called Strike)
Fastball (0-2, Foul)
Slider (1-2, Ball)
Splitter (2-2, Ball)
Slider (2-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Inning Totals:
4/4 first pitch strikes | 19 pitches 13 strikes

Sequence:
Curveball (0-1, Called Strike)
Sinker (1-1, Ball)
Cutter (2-1, Ball)
Slider (2-2, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (4-3)

Sequence:
Fastball (1-0, Ball)
Slider (1-1, Swinging Strike)
Slider (1-2, Foul)
Splitter (1-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Sequence:
Sinker (0-1, Called Strike)
Slider (1-1, Ball)
Slider (1-2, In play, run)
Result: Home Run, 1 run scores

Sequence:
Fastball (1-0, Ball)
Fastball (2-0, Ball)
Slider (2-1, Called Strike)
Cutter (2-2, Swinging Strike)
Slider (3-2, Ball)
Cutter (3-2, Foul)
Curveball (3-2, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (5-3)

Inning Totals:
2/4 first pitch strikes | 18 pitches 11 strikes

Sequence:
Sinker (0-1, Foul)
Slider (0-2, Foul)
Slider (0-2, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (4-3)

Sequence:
Curveball (1-0, Ball)
Slider (1-1, Called Strike)
Splitter (2-1, Ball)
Slider (2-2, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (5-3)

Sequence:
Curveball (1-0, Ball)
Slider (1-1, Called Strike)
Fastball (2-1, Ball)
Sinker (2-2, In play, no out)
Result: Single, throwing error advances runner to 2nd

Sequence:
Curveball (0-1, Foul)
Slider (0-2, Foul)
Slider (1-2, Ball)
Fastball (1-2, Foul)
Curveball (2-2, Ball)
Result: HBP

Sequence:
Slider (0-1, Swinging Strike)
Slider (0-2, Swinging Strike)
Fastball (1-2, Ball)
Curveball (1-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Inning Totals:
3/5 first pitch strikes | 20 pitches 13 strikes

Sequence:
Cutter (1-0, Ball)
Curveball (1-1, Swinging Strike)
Sinker (1-2, In play, no out)
Result: Double

Sequence:
Slider (0-1, Foul)
Curveball (0-2, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (5-3)

Sequence:
Cutter (0-1, In play, out)
Result: Groundout (6-3)

Sequence:
Curveball (0-1, In play, out)
Result: Popout (P6)

Inning Totals:
3/4 first pitch strikes | 7 pitches 6 strikes

Sequence:
Sinker (0-1, Foul)
Splitter (1-1, Ball)
Sinker (1-2, Foul)
Curveball (2-2, Ball)
Curveball (2-2, In play, out)
Result: Popout (P2)

Sequence:
Sinker (0-1, Called Strike)
Fastball (0-2, Foul)
Slider (1-2, Ball)
Splitter (2-2, Ball)
Cutter (3-2, Ball)
Splitter (3-3, Swinging Strike)
Result: Strikeout (K)

Inning Totals:
2/2 first pitch strikes | 11 pitches 6 strikes

FINAL LINE:
4.2 innings
4 Hits
0 Runs
0 Walks
6 Strikeouts
75 Pitches | 49 Strikes (65.3%)
14/19 First Pitch Strikes (73.68%)

The game started off rather poorly for Davalillo, one could say. However, he bounced back just about as well as you could ask for. After all, who cares about a leadoff double when you can simply strike out the side immediately afterward. Simple as. Davalillo followed it up with a strong start to the 2nd, but that is also where he threw his only mistake pitch of the night. If you were to think in your head the perfect situation to purposefully give up a home run this was the sequence to do it. After throwing a slider outside for a ball, you throw the same pitch that he just saw, but in a much more hittable location. It was the perfect storm for a home run pitch, but Davalillo didn't let it phase him and got out of the inning after the next batter. He had a bit of a laborious 3rd inning throwing 20 pitches, but he was pitching well and never seemed to be in any real trouble. Davalillo was likely going to be done after the 4th inning, but with him being able to get out of it in 7 pitches meant he could go out for the 5th as well. Davalillo's masterclass continued as he got 2 outs on 11 pitches, picking up his 6th K on the night, before he was pulled at 75 pitches due to load management.

It's very interesting watching Davalillo work. He holds his glove below his belt and his delivery is very fluid and deceptive. Why it works for him is that he's able to repeat his delivery very well, and locates the strike zone with precision. A 65% strike rate is very good, but what impresses me most is how many first pitch strikes he throws. There can be times where he can get a little lost trying to chase a strikeout, but when he's just in a rhythm living in the zone he's almost an impossible pitcher to face. He can locate the entirety of his arsenal for strikes, and the new cutter he's developing looks to be a very promising weapon. In the minor leagues it's very common to see "throwers," and not "pitchers." However, Davalillo has a very mature feel for reading the game as well as pitch sequencing in a way that you can just see the confidence oozing off of him when he's pitching.

I came away from this game incredibly impressed with David Davalillo. The same excitement I feel watching him pitch is the same feeling Alejandro Rosario gave me last year. For me, there's nothing more rewarding than watching a player in the major leagues that you watched the development of throughout their minor league career. I truly believe that is going to be the case with David Davalillo; he has future No. 4 or 5 starter all over him. He won't overwhelm hitters with stuff, but he sequences beautifully, and locates aggressively and intelligently. It's only his 3rd AA start, but he seems to have picked up exactly where he left off in Hub City. If he keeps it up, Davalillo could be a very fast riser in the Rangers' farm system.